Don’t touch our abortion rights,say women groups

Women groups protesting against the malpractice of illegal sex selection have strongly hit out at government’s move to focus on the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act. The women groups will hold a demonstration on July 18 and submit their charter of demands to the state government.

Instead of victimising the woman,the government should focus on implementing the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act in letter and spirit,said Kiran Moghe of All India Democratic Women’s Association and Varsha Deshpande of the Lekh Laadki Abhiyan.

Various activists from women’s organisations,who met on Friday,said that it was a clever move on government’s part to divert the focus from the declining sex ratio by highlighting the issue of abortion which brings attention to the pregnant woman. There is a need to eliminate the discrimination to the girl child but not at the cost of the mother who is considered to be a murderer,said the activists.

They said political interference has been impeding the movement of cases. Referring to the appointment of special prosecutor Ujwal Nikam in the Beed female foeticide case,the activists said that the issue requires lawyers who are competent instead of lawyers who have a ‘star value’.

There is a need to protect government officials,including district civil surgeons,who were transferred despite performing well,Moghe added. The activists also pointed out that doctors need to keep records.